RWBY: Destiny of Two
by Arclight-Zero
Summary: Ruby and her allies failed to stop Salem from obtaining the Four Relics, and Ruby herself was fatally wounded in the ensuing battle. She wakes up 100 years later, fully healed, but forced to survive in a hellscape wrought by the demi-god that is Salem. Will her destiny bring the salvation of Remnant, or is she destined to fail a second time?
1. Prologue

**RWBY: Destiny of Two**

* * *

 **Prologue: Beginning of the End**

* * *

" _Ruby, no!"_

Ruby's eyes were widened with shock. For a moment, she felt no pain, but time around her seemed to slow. When she looked down at her chest, the young huntress saw an arrow stuck inside of her. Her right hand made feeble attempts to wrap around it. She could not hear Jaune crying out for her, the sounds around her were muffled and vague. It was then did the pain set it and weakened her. She dropped Crescent Rose onto the floor and fell to her knees while tears streamed from her eyes and blood trickled from her mouth.

" _Save her quickly!"_

She saw General Ironwood run past her with his revolver blazing. While his shots were dead on, Cinder had blocked all of them. Nevertheless, it did not deter him and he reloaded his weapon and fired some more. The Fall Maiden closed in and gripped Ironwood by the neck and blasted him back in a fiery explosion. His Aura took the brunt of the damage but the concussion he suffered as he hit against the wall rendered him dizzy. Blake and Yang had rushed to his defence. The cat Faunus had tied Cinder up with Gambol Shroud while Ruby's sister dashed forward with her mechanical arm cocked back. Yang's hair was ablaze and her eyes were red with anger.

Cinder managed to free an arm and pulled Blake in before tossing her at Yang. The two tumbled backwards. Emerald and Mercury managed to reach to Cinder the same time Qrow and a veteran hunter burst into the ruined chamber. Salem's entire mansion was a mess with Salem's followers and the creatures of Grimm clashing with hunters and huntresses from all across Remnant. Qrow paused for a moment with a look of horror on his face when he saw Ruby wounded. He shouted something at Jaune, and the blonde teen rushed over to prop her up.

" _C'mon Ruby, stay with me! You'll be fine!"_

An alpha Beowulf pounced at Jaune and separated him from Ruby. Though her vision was getting blurry and her eyelids getting heavier, she saw Salem approach after she impaled Weiss with her own weapon and casually tossed the wounded Schnee aside. Some of the other hunters tried to stop her, but all of them were batted aside as if they were merely insects. When she was right in front of her, Salem kneeled down and smiled softly at Ruby. She placed a hand on Ruby's cold and sweaty cheek.

" _Do you believe in destiny, Ruby Rose?"_

Ruby was too weak to answer, but it did not matter to her. Salem snapped her finger, and the Beowulf that pinned Jaune down began clawing at his face. He responded by swinging Crocea Mors at his attacker.

" _My destiny is to destroy mankind, and by extension, that means you too. You were never destined for greatness. Like many silver-eyed warriors of the past, your destiny is to die. Accept it, embrace it."_

She held up a relic which glowed a deathly light. It was the Relic of Destruction. Ruby let off a soft and weak gasp, and Salem chuckled before dropping her unceremoniously. When she let go of the Relic, it floated up and orbited around her. She took out 2 more relics, and they too orbited around her. There was one more orb missing but it did not seem to faze Salem one bit. In fact, she had a knowing look on her face.

" _As I am the ultimate form of the Grimm, by the powers of these Relics, I shall be the ultimate form on Remnant, a goddess among Mankind! All shall weep and despair!"_

Ruby had already passed out from her injury, and Jaune had his Aura depleted after Tyrian decided to join in and gave him a thrashing. The other hunters and huntresses were slowly being beaten back by Cinder and the other 3 girls who had stolen powers from the rest of the Maidens. In the end, only Qrow and Yang were conscious enough to see what Salem did next. Whatever the Relics did to her, it did not change her physical appearance, but they felt a power surge coming from her.

There was thunder and lightning outside as the dark purple sky turned total black. With a wave of a hand, Salem created a swirling rift in the sky outside that grew larger by the second. Qrow turned around to see Emerald and Mercury showing signs of fear. Emerald's knees were literally quaking while Mercury looked around frantically as if looking for a way to escape. Cinder and the other Maidens, on the other hand, looked relatively calm, though one of them had a look of concern on her face. Unable to handle what was going on, Emerald fled the chamber with Mercury calling her to come back. Cinder made no attempts to stop them.

The rift eventually engulfed the moon, and a great shadow fell across the land. The mansion was shaking so bad that pieces of the ceiling started raining down on the occupants below. They merely bounced off of Salem and the Maiden, but Qrow and Yang did not want to stick around to see if their Auras had returned or not. They picked themselves up from the ground just as Blake and General Ironwood came too as well. With a hasty beckoning from Qrow, they hurried to rescue their injured comrades. Cinder wanted to stop them, her burning hatred for Ruby causing her to charge up a fireball in her hand. Salem held up her hand to stop her, and while the Fall Maiden gritted her teeth, she complied and dissipated the pre-formed fireball.

" _I will take the pleasure of hunting each and every one of you down. You cannot hide from me."_

Yang was the last to leave as she carried Ruby in her arms. She turned around to glare at Cinder, her eyes red with the fires of vengeance burning in them. Her father once told her that her temper would be her downfall, but this was one act that was unforgivable. Summer died because of the potential power she wielded, killed by the very people who stood in this room. There was no way she would let Ruby suffer the same fate. Cinder and her ilk will pay.

" _This isn't over. Mark my words, Cinder Fall."_

With that, Yang ran. The rift in the sky soon became the only thing the inhabitants of Remnant saw. The purple tinge of chaos energy shone across the planet, and the sun disappeared, replaced by a ghostly spectre of a star that gave off a baleful light. In just 10 minutes, the planet of Remnant was swallowed into another dimension, never to be seen again in the material plane.

* * *

 _Even the most brilliant lights eventually flicker and die. And when they are gone...darkness will return._

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 _A/N: While I did post a story for RWBY earlier in Feb, it was to gauge interest. I appreciate the comments there, and I do not intend to leave that story unfinished. I, however, have vested interest in this one, so I'll be finishing first before continuing the other story. This is basically a 'what-if' scenario, so this fic is an AU where Ruby and her allies failed to stop Salem from destroying mankind. Of course, she could not destroy all of them. Otherwise, there would be no story. Note: this story will contain elements of other media, most notably Warhammer 40k, but not enough to warrant a crossover. Anyway, here's an end to this prologue. Hope you guys like it. Comments and suggestions are highly appreciated._


	2. Chapter 1

**RWBY: Destiny of Two**

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Chapter 1: Return of the Red Reaper

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There was a tingle of energy.

It lingered over her skin and seeped into her mind. Ruby felt it course through her nervous system, but her body was still unconscious and cold. She tried to make a sound, but nothing came from her throat. Her eyelids were too heavy to lift, and her chest hurts. Ruby remained calm and tried to listen for signs of activity around her. She heard her own heartbeat echoing in her ears, but that was it.

Then, a foreign sound came into the mix. It sounded like soft and muffled voices. She tried to call out to whoever it was, but again, her mouth refused to move and her voice was still lost. The voices grew louder and more frantic, and the young huntress thought she heard what sounded like the booming of automatic gunfire. Something exploded nearby and the soft muffles became muffled shouting and cursing.

The commotion lasted only ten seconds before silence reigned once more. Ruby heard some metallic clanks come from somewhere in front of her. Suddenly, the weight that kept her down was lifted, and a blast of cool air rushed into her nostrils. Ruby's eyes flew open instantly and she drew a sharp breath of air as if she had just surfaced after a long dive. She fell forward when she tried to sit up, only to be held up by a man in dirty olive-coloured armour.

"She's alive alright," Ruby heard the man say while she had coughing fits.

"I guess our dear friend remembered correctly for once," another man in a similar outfit said. He knelt down and grabbed a small flashlight from his pocket. A gloved hand shot out and held Ruby's right eyelids open. She was too weak to struggle and her coughing made it hard for her to concentrate on pushing his hand away. He shone the flashlight at her eye, and moved on to the other. "No sign of head trauma."

"Can you walk, Miss Rose?" the man carrying Ruby asked.

Ruby gave one last cough and resisted the itch that still burned in her throat. The other man took out a water bottle from his bag and brought it close to her. He tipped the bottle and water flowed out into her open mouth. Some of it spilled onto the floor and her clothes, but it did not matter to her. It helped calm her throat and while the itch was still there, it was not as bad as it was a few seconds ago. After handing the water bottle back, Ruby eased herself and gestured for the man to let her stand up straight. He nodded and helped her stand up. But once he let go of her, her legs gave out and she collapsed with a surprised yelp. Fortunately, the other man was there to make sure she did not hit the floor.

"She's gonna need physiotherapy when we get back," he said.

"Great, more dead weight," the other man muttered. He hefted her up and carried her bridal style. It elicited a blush from her, but the man was too busy to notice it. "What now, Collin?"

Collin unholstered a revolver and pressed a button at the side of his helmet. "Thunderbird One, this is Striker Two. We have the package and are ready for extraction."

While Ruby could not hear who was at the other end of the communications line, she saw their faces curl into a look of concern. After a while she heard him say 'roger that' and looked at her.

"Our ride's a little busy with a Nevermore flock and a Beowolf pack is headed our way. Looks like we'll be waiting it out for a bit. C'mon."

Whoever the man was, he had a lot of upper body strength. As they ran through the broken hallway, he did not seem to break a sweat. The entire place looked like Mountain Glenn all over again. Concrete pieces littered the floor and fissures in the wall exposed decaying wires. The ceiling lights were non-functional, but the two men had helmet-mounted flashlights to light up the dark corridors. The sound of their boots crunching on concrete and brick pieces echoed throughout the place.

They entered a large atrium where a group of people in similar olive-green armour were gathered. Among them were some casually-dressed people whom Ruby assumed were huntsmen and huntresses. Purple light from the moon flooded the atrium, and under the baleful light, she managed to catch a glimpse of a tattered Atlas banner hanging on a wall nearby. The man put her down on the floor and leaned her against a dried up fountain. He knelt down and placed a familiar object on her lap.

"I've been told to give you this, Miss Rose. Maybe you'll remember your old strength better," he said with a smile.

Ruby managed a weak smile before he stood up and unslung his assault rifle. While he went to address the rest of the team, Ruby felt elated at seeing Crescent Rose again. It was the same as the last time she had seen it except for a few rust spots here and there. She scowled. Her dear baby would need a good cleanup once they get out from whatever mess they were in. Again, she tried to move her hand to grab Crescent Rose, but only managed to lift her fingers. It was a start at least.

"So what's the holdup, El-Tee Roland?" a huntress with cropped blue hair asked with a husky voice. She blew a bubblegum bubble, popped it, and withdrew it back into her mouth. "Where's our ride?"

"Nevermores," Roland replied. "And we have a pack of Beowolves headed our way."

The huntress grinned and planted her warhammer on the floor and cracked it. "About damn time too. I was itching to give these bastards a good ass whooping."

"How large a pack are we talking about?" a huntsman asked.

"No idea, but why drizzle when you can rain, right?" Roland answered. He took out a metal cigarette case and retrieved a cigarette stick from it. "I want the entrance and windows covered. One more thing, Miss Sapphire, no heroics," he said as he turned to look at the blue-haired girl.

"Pssh." Sapphire waved at Roland dismissively. "Believe me, El Tee, we people of Remnant are all about heroics. Even the venerable Pyrrha Nikos wasn't afraid to go all out."

Ruby raised an eyebrow. That was a name she had not heard in a very long while.

"And she's dead," Roland said with a neutral expression. It elicited scowls from the huntsman and huntresses, but the lieutenant seemed unconcerned. "If the story about her was true, then she made the fatal mistake of attempting to take on a superior enemy alone. Strength in numbers, kid. Don't forget."

While the rest of the group went to cover up the windows and set up weapons by the entrance of the building, Collin approached Ruby and knelt down next to her. She smiled at him and he returned it with a weak smile. "It's going to take a while for you to recover, but I have a temporary solution. We'll need all the help we can get."

He grabbed an unrecognisable device and a small green bottle from his first aid kit. Ruby watched as Collin opened the bottle and screwed it onto the device. Pressing the tapered end of the device onto Ruby's forearm. The young huntress closed her eyes in anticipation of pain. The medic pulled the trigger. There was a loud 'snap' and a 'pop', and she felt a mild sting on her skin. Her eyes opened again when Collin removed the device and put a band aid on the area where the injector was.

"I gave you a muscular regeneration shot. It'll give you your strength back, but the effects are only temporary. You still need physiotherapy once we return to Hunter Base," Collin explained while placing a hand on her shoulder. "Give it a minute."

Ruby nodded her head. After Collin went to rejoin with the rest of the group, she decided to start with moving her fingers again. To her awe and surprise, they moved like as if they were not tied to bricks. She wiggled them and did some finger gestures with ease. Soon, Ruby felt tightening in her muscles. It was not debilitating nor was it suffocating her, but it made her felt good, like she had just done some exercise.

She picked herself up from the floor and grabbed Crescent Rose. With a flick of the hand, she unleashed its scythe form. A knowing smile appeared on her face, and it became a grin as she caressed her weapon.

"Oh how I miss you," she cooed in a hoarse voice. She cleared her throat and sighed. "I sound like a frog."

"If you're a frog, then you must be a damn old one, Lady Rose," said Sapphire while walking towards Ruby.

She frowned. "What's that supposed to mean? I'm only 17."

"Yeah, you are, but you've been in stasis for a hundred years," Sapphire said with a grin. "The name's Sapphire Bronte from the Kingdom of –"

"WAIT!" Ruby exclaimed. She held up her hand and stopped Sapphire. "What do you mean 'a hundred years'?"

"I thought you knew," Sapphire muttered while rubbing the back of her head.

"I don't think she has a clock to tell her she's been asleep for that long, dumb-dumb," said a particularly large and tall hunter. He thumped Sapphire's head playfully, causing her to wince. "I apologise for Sapphire's lack of common sense. But she's right, Lady Rose, it has been a hundred years," he said in a reverent tone.

"Um...okay?" Ruby was at a loss for words when she saw him kneel like as if he was kneeling before royalty. "Look, I don't wanna sound disrespectful and all, but...uh...why're you kneeling?"

"They think you're some important person, Miss Rose," Roland called out from the entrance.

"Bu...wha? I don't...huh?"

Nobody could give her an answer as to why, because before Sapphire could help explain, one of the machine gunners posted by the entrance had started firing. The smell of gunpowder quickly filled the air, a smell that Ruby was unfamiliar with. She removed Crescent Rose's magazine and saw that it was empty. One of the hunters called out her name and tossed her an ammo belt filled with Dust rounds. She caught it and wore it around her waist. Ruby did a double take.

One of the Dust bullets had a purple glow to it. Now, Ruby knew that purple Dust had the property of gravity, but the subtle colour difference said otherwise. It was entirely purple instead of the usual purple and black. Not only that, whenever she touched it, whatever was inside the bullet seemed to react to her. A sharp pain stabbed at her head like a thousand knives poking at her.

Whatever that bullet was, it seemed dangerous. She quickly discarded it and ran to join the fight. Ruby exited just in time to see a pack of about a hundred beowolves and a dozen alphas charge the defenders. They looked mostly the same, except for some crystals growing out of their backs. The red glow that was their eyes was replaced by a purple one, the same purple she saw in the bullet earlier.

The hunters and huntresses – a total of 6 of them – had rushed forward to engage the Grimm in close combat. The rest of the fighters stayed back and fired their machine guns, assault rifles, and anti-materiel rifles. Ruby looked at Crescent Rose again and took a deep breath before letting it out with a sigh.

"Let's do this," she whispered.

Activating her Semblance, Ruby dashed forward in a flurry of rose petals. The first beowolf that came into contact with her got completely blindsided. She rammed into it and launched it backwards into another beowolf. Without waiting for the two to recover, Ruby leapt forward and brought her scythe down on their necks, separating their heads from their bodies. Not letting up, she immediately directed her attention towards two more beowolves rushing at her with bloody fangs bared.

Ruby spun Crescent Rose above her head and knocked one of them that pounced at her. Its comrade took the lead and jumped. She did an upper strike with her weapon and embedded the scythe's tip deep into the beowolf's chin. Directing her aura to her weapon arm, Ruby flung the Grimm away with such force that it bifurcated its jaw. It was about to slam into an alpha when the latter just batted it away. One tried to ambush her from behind, but Ruby ducked and thrust Crescent Rose at it just as it sailed over her head. In rapid succession, the young huntress pulled the trigger and sent it flying into the air.

Chancing a glance, she saw Sapphire happily smashing beowolf skulls, her cries of battle mixed in with laughter of slaughter. Despite her diminutive size, the blue-haired girl packed a lot of wallop. Her war hammer cracked bones and flattened heads like they were tomato. Even her left-handed punches sent beowolves reeling back into pain. She did not see an alpha running up from her right side, and she got pinned down by surprise. Ruby wasted no time dashing towards it and sliced its back. It yelped in pain, and while its grip on Sapphire loosened, she drove the top of her hammer into its face and shattered its head.

"My hero," she said jokingly and gave Ruby a wink.

Ruby blushed at the compliment. It seemed almost too easy that she was sure that Sapphire could easily save herself. The alphas posed little challenge to the group as one-by-one, their numbers whittled under huntsman attacks and gunfire. Even those that attempted to charge at the gunners were quickly cut down. However, things took an unexpected turn when one of the alphas opened its maw, the crystals on its back glowed brightly, and fired purple crystals from its mouth. Ruby was dumbstruck. There was no way any regular Grimm could do that. The crystals peppered one of the machine gunners in the neck and face, killing the poor man instantly. He fell backwards limply.

It struck her odd as well. Did they not have aura? If they did, it should have protected them from the crystals. More questions surfaced in her mind, but Ruby banished them. They were in the thick of battle right now. Questions can come later. She saw one alpha leading a group away from the main horde and they were running outside the peripheral vision of the gunners. Ruby knew instantly what they were up to. She rushed them while avoiding a slew of beowolf attacks and pounces. Once she broke free of the melee, Ruby jumped and fired Crescent Rose behind her. The recoil shot her up and towards the splinter group. She raised her weapon and swung at the alpha beowolf. However, it saw her coming and dodged underneath her scythe. Landing some distance away from the pack, Ruby dashed back at them and cut a beowolf down. The rest quickly turned on her.

They leapt at her all at once, but Ruby zigzagged between them while cutting their bodies and heads in a blast of rose petals. The alpha roared a challenge at her. She gritted her teeth and swung. It parried her strikes in an almost human-like manner, as if it was a trained fighter. A single punch from it knocked Ruby off balance, and without letting up, the alpha swung its claws rapidly at her. She managed to block a few strikes until one of them pushed her onto the ground. Her aura flared.

There was a blue glint in the sky, and it was directly above the alpha beowolf. It dove down like an eagle, and Ruby saw who it was. Sapphire had her hammer raised behind her head, the hammerhead crackled with blue-white lightning. Reacting quickly, Ruby rolled out of the way just in time to dodge a claw strike. A few seconds later, the beowolf found itself sent up into the air with electricity coursing through it. Sapphire slammed the ground so hard it cratered and threw up a dense cloud of sand and dust. Ruby saw her chance to deal a strike, and she leapt upwards and slammed the alpha down where Sapphire waited with an anticipating grin. Right before it could hit the ground, she bashed it hard enough that it flew over a cliff not far from where they were.

"If I hadn't known better, I'd say you might be Nora in disguise," Ruby said when she landed.

"Nora...you mean Lady Nora Valkyrie?" Sapphire asked while hefting her hammer casually.

"Yep!" Ruby nodded happily. "Is she alive?"

Sapphire shook her head. "She died of old age some 20 years ago. Lived a long life, bless her."

"Oh, I see," said a crestfallen Ruby.

Sapphire placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "I heard from my mom that she spoke very highly of you. You can't imagine how much hope she had in her, believing that you were always alive. Her dying wish was to see you return home safely."

Wherever home was. To Ruby's comfort, at least Nora had lived in relative safety. Ruby blinked rapidly and wiped some tears from her eyes. She took notice of the hammer while doing so. "That hammer, it's not Magnhild, is it?" she asked.

"Nope. This is Raigo, but you can call it Daemonhammer. You won't be wrong to say that I took many inspirations from Lady Valkyrie. Even my semblance has something to do with lightning and thunder," Sapphire explained.

Ruby looked behind Sapphire and saw that the group was busy cleaning up the last of the beowolves. She then returned the attention to the huntress before her. "I noticed you don't actually channel lightning through your body."

"Obvious statement of the century, Lady Rose." Sapphire said with a smile. "I do have the ability to generate lightning and channel it through Raigo though. No Dust required."

A loud roar could be heard coming from somewhere by the cliff. When Ruby went to investigate, an aircraft rose up and surprised her. Its twin engines flared as it sped towards the group. It seemed to be in good condition despite a giant Nevermore feather piercing its side. The two rejoined the rest of the group just in time to see the aircraft's ramp open up. Two medics emerged with two body bags, each carrying one. The interior of the aircraft was dark, but Ruby noticed there was a silhouette of a person in it. As the person stepped out from the aircraft and into the purple glow of the moon, Ruby's jaw dropped. Almost instantly, her surprise turned into one of recognition and happiness. The other person was calm and collected, but his smile was unmistakable.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby cried out

"Hey, kid, long time no see," he replied with a casual wave.

She ran up to him and hugged him so tightly that Qrow had to wrench her free. "How? How is it that you're still alive?"

"Long story, but I don't wanna bore you with the details right now. So here's the short and sweet version: Warp fuckery."

"What?" Ruby cocked her head.

"I'll explain more when we get back to Terminus City." He turned to look at the soldiers standing by the entrance. "It's what brought them here too," Qrow muttered. While Qrow was examining them, Ruby noticed something wrong with his eyes.

Instead of the usual red that she was familiar with, it was tinged with purple. He even wore a long-sleeved shirt, something her uncle would loathe under normal circumstances. Even with the sleeves covering his arms, Ruby noticed a purple glow coming from his right arm. She did not manage to ask him about it as he had disembarked to talk with Lieutenant Roland. A few of the hunters stepped into the aircraft, and Sapphire beckoned Ruby to join them.

This aircraft looked nothing like the Bullhead. It was larger, rather square-ish, and frankly, quite unsightly. But the engines were far quieter, and the interior was very spacious. It could easily fit twenty well-equipped huntsmen, and maybe even two Paladins. The pilots broke and removed the feather before welding the gash with plasma torches. It was a crude repair, but it did its job.

"Not bad for your first fight in a hundred years eh," a huntress said as she looked at Ruby.

Ruby nodded shyly and sighed. The weakness of the body had returned now that the drug had worn off. She became lethargic, though not as bad as it was before. Her aura had restored some of her natural strength, but it was not enough for her to walk about freely. Soon, fatigue took over, and Ruby's eyelids closed shut. She did not feel Qrow propping her up, the aircraft lifting off, and the hum of the engines.

All she felt, was total darkness.

* * *

 _A/N: Having a very free day does wonders for creativity, if only I stopped trying to play Dawn of War every time I get the chance! As for responses for some comments I received, funny that you two should mention Breath of the Wild, cos I assure you its total coincidence. I never even followed the game xD_

 _Anyway, I appreciate the comments. Keep them coming, I'd love to hear more from my readers, be it suggestions or critiques._


	3. Chapter 2

**RWBY: Destiny of Two**

* * *

 **Chapter Two: Relic from the Past**

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" _Eagle's Nest, I got eyes on the prize. Multiple Bravo Whiskies surrounding the pod. Please advice."_

" _Sigma Two-Actual, Mother Bird has issued a hold position. Do not engage until reinforcements arrive. ETA five minutes, over."_

" _We don't have 30 seconds, Eagle's Nest."_

" _Don't be a hero, Two-Actual. Stand down and await reinforcements."_

" _I'm not about to see another innocent person get torn apart by them, Eagle's Nest."_

* * *

The beowolf alpha circled the exposed pod like a hungry predator toying with a helpless prey. It could see a human behind the reinforced window pane, asleep and vulnerable. It bared its teeth and growled while gobs of purplish-clear saliva dripped from its maw. The others waited in a circle, watching their leader attempt to break open the glass. It clawed at the glass. Normally, reinforced glass could withstand even a repeated assault from an alpha. However, one had the strength to crack it in a couple of swipes. The security system built into the pod deployed a strong alloy shutter in response, covering the damaged pane before the creature could reach the occupant.

Undeterred, the alpha howled and assaulted the shutter as well. This time, the entire beowolf pack joined the attack on the pod. They ripped off wires and tubes that powered the pod's life support system, and some began pounding on the pod itself. One of the beowolves found the main Dust reactor that kept the pod powered and proceeded to remove the crystal from the housing. It threw the thing aside, and the Fire Dust slid across the floor for a bit until it came to a stop by a fallen statue. The red glow given off by the crystal revealed a piece of the statue's fallen head located next to it, only half a face left which looked like it belonged to General Ironwood.

Suddenly, a loud crack resounded throughout the hallway. A projectile struck the armoured head of the alpha and cracked part of its mask. The force of the projectile was so great that it knocked the creature off the pod like a rag doll. The pack stopped their attack after seeing what happened to their leader. It quickly got up and grunted what seemed like a command, and the pack quickly dispersed into the shadows of the ruined military base. They were unaware of a tiny speck hovering high above them, observing their every move like a silent hawk.

A white-coloured hover drone was near unnoticeable. Not only was it small, it had the bright purple glow of the moon behind it. To an eagle-eyed observer with an infrared observation device though, the otherwise stealthy drone gave itself away via an infrared scanner which it used to scan for the beowolves. Fortunately for the little drone, there were no nevermores in the vicinity. As its camera switched through multiple view modes, it fed the visual data to a figure laying prone on a nearby hill that overlooked the ruins. The data from the drone fed to his visor, and he adjusted his rifle's power output accordingly. He turned a knob to the left of the rifle, and the magnetic coils began humming louder with power.

Once the metre on the rifle read 100% charged, the person took aim at the alpha beowolf's head. Despite it hiding behind a pillar, the drone had eyes on it, and using the visual feed, he could accurately pinpoint his target without seeing it for himself. With the beowolf leader standing still and not realising what was about to happen, the man pulled the trigger. A ferromagnetic projectile flew out of the barrel at the twice the speed of sound. It punched through a wall and the pillar and struck the alpha right in the head. A deafening crack alerted the beowolf pack, and they quickly turned to look at their leader. Unfortunately, their leader slumped onto the floor, its head had split open like a bloomed flower.

At first, they had no idea what just happened. The attack came seemingly out of nowhere. Then, they heard the telltale sound of gunfire a few seconds later. They snarled in unison and broke out of cover to charge at the direction of the sound. Just as the first beowolf emerged from the shadows and stepped out of the ruins, a second shot blew its head wide open like a melon. The headless body tumbled backwards like a rag doll, but the fallen beowolf's comrades ignored the danger and pressed ahead. They trampled over the dissipating body, not caring what happened to their fallen comrade.

There was a bright glint at the top of the hill. They found their attacker. The beowolf group rushed up the hill without signs of slowing down, their pants and growls getting louder and faster as they neared the shooter. Another shot rang out, and the leading beowolf yelped in pain as a projectile severed its front and back left legs. The projectile kept travelling, and it hit another beowolf in the chest. Blood spurted from the cavity like a fountain. The two wounded beowolves tumbled down the hill and came to a crunching halt at the base. Both had already died at that point, and their bodies dissipated into black mists. But they left behind a purple crystal that had swirling energies within it. With no vessel to contain the crystal, it shattered, and the energies within them dissipated in a vaguely human-like scream.

The remaining ten beowolves reached the top of the hill. By then, the shooter had already retreated behind some sandbags located a few feet away from the edge. One of the beowolves spotted him and snarled a challenge, only to be pelted at by explosive bullets. From the safety of his cover, the shooter fired his weapon in controlled bursts. The beowolf who got shot at took only minimal damage, its torso solidified into a purple crystalline structure right before the bullets hit it. The bullets damaged the crystal but the beowolf was unharmed.

Unfazed, he kept shooting until his magazine ran dry. Once he stopped shooting, the crystal dissipated, leaving a regular-bodied beowolf. By then, the group had charged him. They were right by the sandbags even before the person could insert a fresh magazine, but a beowolf that tried to pounce at him was not expecting a close-range shotgun blast. Dozens of steel pellets peppered its abdomen and knocked it back down. It got mangled so badly that the beowolf dissipated almost immediately after it hit the ground. But the attack left the person open, and the rest of the beowolves pounced on him.

They managed to pin him down, and immediately raised their claws to swipe at him and snapped their maws hungrily. He pushed them away and threw kicks and punches. His reflexes were fast, and his strikes knocked the wind out of his adversaries. With a single hand, he grabbed one of the beowolves by the throat and flung it at one of its comrades. Another one lunge at him with claws extended, but the person did a side kick and planted his combat boot into its face. The bone mask fractured with a sickening crack, and the beowolf's head twisted at an unnatural angle.

One managed to get the jump on the man, and it clawed at his face. It managed to remove his mask and visor, and the damaged equipment clattered onto the ground. Behind the mask was the face of a man with green eyes and a determined smile, one that showed excitement as well. He drew a hilt from his utility belt and pressed the activation button. A two-pronged blade emerged, and it hummed with power and crackled with electricity. He ran towards a charging beowolf and ran the blade right up its jaw while receiving a slash to the face in retaliation. Blood flowed from the lacerations, but the man drove the sword further in. The sword easily punctured through the forming crystalline armour, and the end of the sword came up through the roof of the maw.

Another beowolf headbutted him while he was busy freeing his sword, and the man crashed into the sandbags. Another one ran up to him and opened its mouth, revealing a row of razor sharp fangs that could easily puncture flesh and regular armour. It aimed for his neck, but the man turned in time for the creature to bite down on his shoulder plating instead. The steel plate broke the beowolf's teeth, and it cried out in pain. While it was distracted by the pain, the man swiped at its legs, causing it to fall. Before it could get up, he unholstered his handgun in a swift motion while getting up, and shot its right eye.

"Anytime with the reinforcements, Eagle's Nest," the man said calmly while dodging a swipe and throwing a roundhouse kick. Instead of receiving a reply from headquarters, he heard a spirited female voice instead.

" _You could've just waited, Cap!"_

A loud roar from the sky made the beowolf group pause. A transport aircraft flew by and released its payload. But it was only a single unit, an armoured powered assault suit in a jet-assisted descent. The man took the opportunity to retrieve his shotgun and assault rifle that was just outside of his reach. They noticed him reaching for his gun, and were about to attack him when the mechanical unit disengaged from its descent thrusters. It fell towards the ground like an armoured meteorite, and landed right on an unprepared beowolf. The helpless creature was reduced into a rain of dissipating gibblets by the 20-ton machine. The landing threw up a large cloud of dust, and the ground around it cratered.

The beowolf group ignored the man and bum rushed the mech. It threw a series of punches and dodged sideways by activating its evasion thrusters. Every time one beowolf got close, it met with a grisly end like being ripped apart by the mech's powerful hands, pounded into the ground, and shot up by the shoulder-mounted machine gun. They had fought many robotic enemies in the past before, and they were no strangers to fighting the sluggish Atlesian war machines. But this one was new, it moved too human-like. It acted like one too, even though none of the beowolves detected any humans piloting it. The mech taunted the hesitating group by wagging its finger.

" _It's not nice to keep a lady waiting."_

There were three beowolves left, and one of them got taken out by a sneak attack. The man had fired his shotgun at the flank of one of them, rendering it immobile. The other two were immediately attacked by the mech, with one getting its head crushed by heavy duty metal fingers while the other one took a face full of Dust pellets ejected from a wrist-mounted weapon. The mech dropped the dead beowolf in its grasp and did a hand-dusting motion. The cacophony of metal-on-metal made the man frown. The cockpit canopy lit up, and the face of a blonde-haired young woman showed up. She was grinning at the man, seemingly pleased with herself for saving day.

"Yes, Ms. Yang, your help was appreciated," he said with a sigh. He reached for his broken mask and rebreather and picked them up. "Fucking hell," he muttered.

" _I totally saved your ass, didn't I, Lucan?"_ she remarked, her voice sounded happy and robotic at the same time.

"You certainly saved me a lot of trouble. Give me more time and I can blast these bitches back to the Stone Age," Lucan replied. "That wouldn't be efficient now, would it?"

Yang sighed, her mech body drooped as if exasperated. _"Yes, yes, you and your 'marine efficiency' thing."_ She perked up again and pointed a finger at him. _"But you gotta say I helped you!"_

Lucan had already turned his back on her and was headed for the ruins below. Letting out an annoyed huff, Yang-bot followed the man in brown greatcoat. She wondered how such a cumbersome and archaic-looking piece of clothing could end up as armour for him. When they first met, she thought the marines looked ridiculous. She never expected seeing state-of-the-art armour underneath all that though. Perhaps the coat was there to lull enemies into a false sense of security. If that was the intention, it worked. Yang had seen the greatcoat in action. It stopped knife stabs and absorbed some heated shots, but that was all it could do. The bulk of the protection was carried out by hypersteel combat plates, heat-dissipating thermal gel layers, and the marine's cybernetic and biotic enhancements.

As for Yang herself, she was two minds about her temporary body. After escaping from Salem and hiding Ruby away in a stasis pod, she returned to Vale with the rest of team RWBY to join up with other hunters and huntresses in defending the kingdom. During a routine patrol mission, the blonde huntress got fatally wounded in a demonic attack. She still has nightmares about the misshapen tentacled horrors that suddenly burst out from the forest and nearly tore her to pieces. Had it not been for Qrow and Glynda, she might not have made it. Her groupmates were not that lucky though. While she survived the encounter, Yang could not fully recover. Her mind was alert and clear, but her body remained paralysed and wounds would suddenly break out. It was her uncle's idea to put her in a tank of healing fluids, and while it did help keep her from dying, it also continually regenerated aging cells. As a result, as long as Yang remained in the tank, she would remain young.

Attempts at communication during the first couple of decades were hard. She could not make a sound nor could she even move a finger. About 40 years ago, an Atlesian scientist managed to obtain a breakthrough in human-computer neural interfacing. He chose Yang as a test subject for device that translated brain signals into audio. She was given a voice, but she hated the fact that talking was all she could do. When the Terrans arrived on Remnant 5 year ago though, they took it one step further.

Allowing her to telepathically control a battle suit was an interesting way of letting her beat baddies up while still confined in the tank, but Yang yearned for the feeling of combat, the real adrenaline rush, the gust of wind over her skin. Controlling just a piece of machine felt like she was fighting without any of the feels.

"Yang," Lucan called out, breaking her train of thought. She stopped beside him and saw him looking at the lone pod in the middle of the ruins. "I think you should be the one to help him."

" _I guess,"_ Yang said softly.

Her metal feet made resonating thuds which each step she took on the marble floor. Yang stood by the pod and stared at it for a few seconds. Another relic from the past, another attempt by her uncle and General Ironwood to preserve the lives of people. But for what purpose if everyone is bound to die anyway? She ripped the pod's lid open as if it was tissue paper and threw the mangled metal aside. Inside laid the unconscious figure that was Jaune Arc, the former leader of Team JNPR. He had aged slightly, but other than a slight stubble and slightly longer hair, his looks were still familiar to the blonde brawler.

" _Live to fight another day,"_ Yang whispered as softly as she could.

Lucan joined up with Yang and looked into the pod. "He said that?"

" _Long story,"_ Yang said with a dismissive wave, her emote on the display changing from neutral to annoyed.

The marine shrugged, preferring not to press the question further. While Yang scooped Jaune out of the damaged stasis pod and leaned him against it, Lucan pressed a button on his earpiece.

"Eagle's Nest, package is unharmed and ready for extraction. You can thank me later."

" _And me!"_ Yang added in a spirited tone.

" _Roger that, Sigma Two-Actual. A Firehawk was dispatched ten minutes ago, ETA to extraction point is 2 minutes, over."_

"Any signs of Grimm?" Lucan enquired.

There was a pause before the control officer spoke up. _"Negative, captain, drone pulse scan shows no sign of Grimm activity nearby. You're in the clear."_

"Thanks, Eagle's Nest." He turned off the earpiece and looked at Yang. "Time to head home."

" _Psh, and here I thought we get to beat up some more baddies."_ Yang did a one-two punch and bounced as if readying for a boxing match. _"Been itching for a good fight. You sure you don't wanna spar with me when we get back to base?"_

"Yang," Lucan said while patting his chest to emphasise a point. "We're brave but not stupid. Being brave wins you wars; being stupid gets you killed. I can take on a lot of things with my hands but I'm not about to try ripping a powered suit in half."

She was about to tell him about evening the odds with him wearing powered fists when she spotted a strange anomaly forming in the sky. It seemed like a little dot of bright light in the sky at first, but very quickly it became a literal tear that resembled a crack in a wall. Lucan felt a dull pain behind his eyes and his head started hurting. As a marine, taking pain was part of the job. From taking gut punches to getting shot and even suffering acid and plasma burns, Lucan could say he experienced it all. He knew intimately the pains he was subjected to.

This headache, however, felt unnatural. He could not explain it, but it just felt wrong. That, and the sudden urge to actually jump at Yang and tear her circuits out.

" _Oh fuck,"_ Yang muttered when she saw some grotesque creatures emerge from the fissure.

"I think we better leave." Lucan sounded irritated and borderline angry. He had already removed his helmet to rub his temples. It did not ease the pain.

His companion did not need telling twice. Immediately after picking up Jaune, she bugged out the moment Lucan opened his mouth. With adrenaline rushing through his head, he could somehow think clearly again as the pain and anger subsided somewhat. He followed Yang to a nearby park where the extraction point was. Lucan retrieved a smoke grenade from his utility belt and pulled the pin.

He threw it next to a dried up fountain. Seconds later, orange smoke bellowed from the metal canister. The smoke plume was carried northwards by the wind. They heard the roar of jet engines moments after the plume reached its maximum height. The Firehawk transport emerged from a nearby forest, its twin searchlights zeroed in on the would-be passengers. The heavy duty turbofan engines flared brightly as the large aircraft descended as quickly and steadily as possible. Once the Firehawk landed at a nearby clearing, the rear ramp opened up, and two rangers emerged.

"Leg it, you two! The hell breach is widening!" one of the rangers shouted while waving a hand to hurry them.

Lucan nodded while Yang spared a glance over her powered suit's shoulder. The crack in the sky had widened quite a bit, and more creatures were pouring out from it. If Yang was in her own body, she would be shuddering. The sight of these hellish creatures penetrating the barrier was accompanied by wailing sirens, increased Grimm activity, and occasional dimensional transitions in areas near the breach.

After Lucan called out her name, Yang sprinted up the ramp. The aircraft took off while the ramp was still closing up. Before the ramp closed entirely, Lucan and Yang managed to catch a glimpse of some ethereal objects surrounding the barrier. For a moment, it looked like the breach was being stitched up.

"Christ, they sent a marine and a Juggernaut to rescue one single guy?" the ranger with a scar asked.

Yang, who was parked at a charging port, looked up. _"Hey, that one single guy's a friend of mine."_

"Relax, Miss Yang. He has a point," Lucan remarked as he leaned back on his seat. " Commanding officers don't usually deploy marines to rescue people or deal with a pack of beowolves."

" _Aren't you all soldiers?"_ Yang asked indignantly.

"And we have our roles. You know what they call us back in the Federation?" He sat up straight and looked at Yang. "Siegebreakers, heavy assault force, hardboiled, and the final word."

" _So...a soldier then?"_ Yang asked while doing a head scratching motion.

"Soldiers do a little bit of everything. Recon, conventional assault, counter-terrorism, you name it. Marines, on the other hand, are there to plant boots up people's cakeholes and basically get soldiers out of hot water. In other words, High Command only deploys marines during desperate and tough situations," the scarred ranger explained. "Put a marine in a room of beowolves or boarbatusks, well, you gotta feel sorry for most of them." He chuckled a bit, and that elicited some from Lucan as well.

Yang chuckled too, though it sounded a little bit like static. _"I'm guessing Rangers are different from soldiers too?_

The scarred ranger nodded. "Light infantry. Go in, harass, bug out. We keep enemies on their toes. I personally had plenty of fun keeping those damn aliens awake at night during the Balkan campaign."

"He's only saying that cos he got upset when they gave him an anal probe," Lucan added.

Yang guffawed at the statement while said ranger smiled bitterly. Her laugh was surprisingly natural and rather human-like unlike her chuckle. Before Lucan could ask Yang about her life before Remnant went to hell, they heard a groan come from Jaune. The young man that was strapped to a seat began to stir, but his movements were slow and weak.

The other ranger rushed over to him immediately to check on him, subjecting Jaune to a series of simple tests. So far, nothing out of the ordinary has happened to him. But the ranger medic insisted on having him checked at Terminus Hospital to obtain a clean bill of health. For now though, Jaune seemed healthy, albeit physically weakened due to a century of stasis.

When Jaune managed to open his eyes after several tries, he found himself staring at a mech with a smiley face on a digital display. It waved at him as if it had known him for a long time.

When it spoke, he instantly recognised its voice. _"Hey Jaune, welcome to the future."_

* * *

 _A/N_ : Yes, my fellow RWBY fans, welcome to several weeks into the future. First of all, I'd like to thank all of you who commented. I 110% appreciate the gesture! Now, to address some comments:

 **TheDunkBro** : That is a secret for now. A distant relative, a coincidence? Who knows, but it shall be revealed in later chapters. But the possibilities are limited I can assure you that haha!

 **Guest** : As much as I want to blame Magnus (or maybe Tzeentch), it's definitely not him. Also, a quick note, this story doesn't take place in the distant future. In Warhammer 40k terms, it's the middle-late 2nd millennia (year 600-ish). How has Remnant survived the onslaught of the Warp? That shall be answered in another chapter. But you already got a glimpse of it here heh.

 **Matt Cyr** : While it's not inspired by Breath of the Wild, I must admit, it's a pretty impressive game. Alas, I don't have a Nintendo console to play it on xD

 **ZeNadderCat & thewingedmoose**: Thank you for your comments!

If you have any questions, reviews, or suggestions, I'm more than happy to reply them in the next chapter. Until then, have a good weekend!


	4. Chapter 3

**RWBY: Destiny of Two**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: A Dragon's Story**

* * *

" _Attention, citizens of Terminus City, today's alert level is 'green'. You may go about your daily activities. Thank you for your cooperation, and remember, coveting with demons is punishable by death."_

If there was one thing Ruby Rose never thought she would see, it was a dystopian city. Sure, she had seen plenty of those on holo-tape during her academy days, but those were only movies. Now, it looked like as if she was living in something straight out of _Sword Sprinter_. No matter which part of the city she was in, the Atlesian Council Tower remained a constant landmark. Throughout Terminus City, public announcement systems broadcasted the Council's will and law in the form of a female voice which sounded hollow and omnipresent. The duration of her stay in the city was rather peaceful, and Ruby thought it had always been that way, but some of the long-time citizens said otherwise.

After completing her physiotherapy session for the day, Ruby decided to meet up with Yang at a café located by Terminus Plaza. It was not too far from Hunter Base, the main base of operations and refuge centre for the Terrans. Her reunion with her sister was mixed with a sense of nostalgia and a tinge of awkwardness. She wanted to hug her sister, but she doubted anyone on Remnant thought it was a good idea to hug a hulking piece of machine. As for her actual body, they could not release Yang from the rejuvenation tank either. So, their first meeting in a hundred years culminated in only a bone-crushing handshake. Had it not been for her Aura, Ruby's hand would have been crushed by the mech's grip.

A month after arriving in Terminus City, she had gone through several outfits before settling on something she liked. It was her old Slayer outfit which she remembered wearing only once when Team RWBY went out to investigate the White Fang and Roman Torchwick. The other outfits fell along the lines of contemporary designs, which involved neon-coloured lines, tall collars, and ridiculous-looking cuffs. She thought them ugly and refused to wear them. The fact that someone painstakingly kept her clothes in good condition impressed and unnerved her. It was as if they venerated them as some holy relics. Her suspicions were confirmed when her attendants had to actually go to a chapel to retrieve them. Even then, the caretaker was reluctant to give them up.

Pushing the unpleasant memory aside, Ruby made her way down the main street from Hunter Base and took a left turn into Terminus Plaza. It was late evening according to her watch, but the sky was always purplish and dark that it did not matter what time of day it is. She looked up at the sky and saw the moon's glow waning slightly as if it was running out of energy. That was not what attracted her attention though. In the warped purple skies, she saw massless shadows gliding across the expanse like silent haunting spectres prowling for a prey to feast on. The hunters told her that those were demons of the empyrean, and the reason they could not enter Remnant was because of a protective barrier that surrounds the planet.

It raised lot of questions in her mind, but she decided to look more into it later. Right now, she just wanted to catch up with her sister. There was a thin crowd that night with huntsmen and huntresses forming much of the crowd. Most of them were either preparing for a night mission or just having some rest and relaxation. The bars and cafes were teeming with activity, and Ruby swore she heard a group of people singing drunkenly in one of the watering holes. As she neared the designated café, Ruby was greeted by a pop-up holographic advertisement. A female feline Faunus with twin pigtails smiled at the young huntress and began showing a series of weapon modifications and upgrades.

The love for weapons never lost in her, Ruby stopped to listen to what the advertisement had to say. Extended magazines, accelerator rails, variable optics, and the likes were presented in rotating 3D models. If Ruby was aware of what she was doing, she would have slapped her forehead for drooling like an idiot. The array of mods and accessories was too much for her to comprehend, and it looked like as if the holo-Faunus was smiling at her undivided attention. She wanted them, she wanted to see if they could further improve Crescent Rose's performance. It was not as if her weapon had underperformed, but she felt the need to continue making it better. A little voice in her head told her to go ahead and buy whatever she needed, and this time, the holo-Faunus leaned forward towards Ruby.

" _Nothing is constant."_

Ruby's eyes widened and she shook her head. The hologram she thought was talking to her had become a static image when she refocused on it. The words _'Jaegerwerk – Atlas's Premier Weapons Manufacturer'_ circled above its head like a halo crown. She did not recall any company with that name It had to be established a little later, and by the look of things, it had a lot of influence and wealth. Perhaps she should pay the place a little visit later. After all there's no harm improving Crescent Rose so that it could fight the new creatures of Grimm better. Accelerator rails sounded like a good deal, and she smiled at the thought of firing a Dust round at supersonic speeds. That would greatly increase the sniper mode's killing power.

While she contemplated on it, Ruby turned around to head for the café, only to walk into a large mechanoid. She fell backwards and landed on her bottom, and the mechanoid chuckled at her predicament. With yellow painted at several outlines and armour plating on it, she recognised who it was. The mechanoid offered a hand, and Ruby took it. It pulled her onto her feet. After she was back up again, she dusted her skirt and looked at the emote display located at where the cockpit would be.

" _Let me guess, you wanna get some nice upgrades," Yang said._

"I don't think 'nice' begins to describe it," Ruby remarked while looking back at the ad. It had started moving again, replaying the same animation. "Sure is tempting though."

" _You know what else is tempting? Having a nice cup of coffee."_

Ruby cocked her head. "But…you're not you…I mean, you can't drink anything, like, you got no mouth?"

" _Hey, a girl can still dream, Rubes. Besides, we've got a lot of catching up to do,"_ Yang said. _"You were always either asleep or in therapy session. What better way to get together like old times than over a drink in a quiet establishment."_

"I thought you always liked clubs. You go to Junior's almost every Saturday night," Ruby said as the two walked past a pair of huntresses who ogled at them with starry eyes.

Yang shrugged. _"Atlas hasn't got any. You either get a two-bit watering hole with low-grade drinks and lecherous slimebags, or you get a decent place that has a 'no robots' rule. I mean, who the fuck discriminates against a human-controlled mech? I don't like Junior, but at least he knows how to do business."_

"I don't think Junior has had the chance to serve robots and mechs," Ruby remarked while chuckling.

" _Meh, he's long dead."_ Yang stopped in her tracks by an empty intersection and pointed down 8th Street, which was to her right. _"C'mon, Rubes, the café's this way."_

The _Khan's Coffee Bean_ was a small but decent-looking establishment located next to a library called _Prospero Books_. The two were connected to each other, allowing patrons to enjoy their meals while doing some reading and scholarly discussions. Unlike some of the earlier groups of people they encountered, the crowd that visits these places was comprised of bookish people and, for some reason, people with odd headdresses that made them look like nuns and Mistrali priests from the days of old. Said headdresses were ornate and advanced-looking at the same time, an odd mix of technology and ancient lavish designs.

It was odd that Yang would pick this place specifically. She never was the type of person who liked reading books, and the only times she went to the library was to play board games with their friends. If Blake was here though, she would definitely approve of it. Ruby herself was not too big into books either, but she would not avoid them as much as her sister would. The only books that she has an overt interest in are books about weapons, all sorts of weapons, be it guns, swords, scythes (especially scythes), mods, and all that pertains to killing stuff. As eager as she was to see what new technologies were available in contemporary times, Ruby did not want to leave her sister alone.

A waiter was there to welcome them at the entrance, and as they approached him, the tall young man with red hair took a respectful bow. "Welcome to _Khan's Coffee Bean_. A table for…two?" he asked politely but eyed Yang with a hint of confusion on his face.

" _What, don't recognise me, Red?"_ Yang asked with arms crossed.

He blinked a bit before laughing out of embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, Lady Yang, I didn't realise it was you. Usually, we see you with a bigger power armour."

" _That's my combat mech. I prefer my social body to be a little more…shapely, if you catch my drift."_

Ruby could not help but raise an eyebrow at that statement. Yang did tend to flirt with any guy she fancies, and Ruby has gotten used to it. But seeing her do it via a controlled machine was rather peculiar and quite disconcerting. By the looks on the guy's face, it looked like he was used to Yang flirting with him like that. Ruby had to admit that Yang's so-called social body had a rather attractive look about it. It had curves in the right places, and the size of her chest was almost the same as her real body's. The red-haired huntress wondered if her sister deliberately asked for it to be made that way.

"Eh heh, you should really bring this 'social body' of yours out more often. It tends not to unnerve customers," Red said while giving a short laugh and rubbing the back of his head.

" _It's only when I want attention,"_ Yang remarked. Her attention was turned towards a couple of tall bespectacled young men that looked more like students than huntsmen. _"Speaking of attention, I think I like what I see."_

"I didn't know you were into nerds," Ruby whispered as she leaned close to her sister.

" _Pfft, I prefer to use the term 'Intelligent Jocks' for their case. But hey, we're here for a sister-sister bonding time. They can wait."_

Ruby smiled and nodded. As the waiter led them to a comfortable seating spot, Ruby took the chance to examine her surroundings. Despite the café's futuristic exterior, the interior design was rather quaint. The lighting was also dim, giving the place a relaxed atmosphere. Hanging on the wooden walls were pictures and photographs of famous huntsmen and huntress, and to Ruby's pleasant surprise, there were familiar faces. One of them was Weiss who looked like she was in her late 20s, and the other was Yang in a rather dashing brown coat. Their names were engraved at the bottom of the picture frames, and each picture was accompanied by a plaque that described the events that made them heroes. She paused to read the plaque that was dedicated to her sister.

 _Huntress Yang Xiao Long volunteered to protect the bastion town of Redmond's Folly. She single-handedly defeated a group of demon-possessed Grimm and a demon while ensuring minimum casualties. For her uncommon valour and willingness to go beyond the call of duty, she was awarded the Guardian of Vale medal, and her actions rooted out a major cult. Blessed is the one who helps a fellow mortal._

Ruby moved to Weiss's next. She saw her friend standing tall with Myrtenaster held up high as if she was receiving a heavenly power. Her outfit was drastically different, and while Weiss retained her combat skirt, the rest of her outfit made her look like an angelic knight, a common armour design during the days of the Kingdom of Mantle. She still retained her off-centre bun tail, but the tiara used to keep it in place was replaced by a black bow topped with a red rose. Rallying behind her were a group of hunters in a charging stance. Ruby looked at the plaque and read it.

 _Weiss Schnee, founder of the Royal Knights of Atlas, was said to have received messages from Oum, telling her not to despair in times of darkness. During the Reconquest Campaign, she managed to recapture settlements and lands lost to the combined Grimm-Demonic forces that plagued Northern Solitas. Despite overwhelming odds in most battles, she would survive to fight another day, acting as a symbol of hope and resistance. For the one who spreads the spirit of hope, they are conduits for everlasting life._

"Not bad, Weiss, not bad," Ruby said softly. She looked at the other pictures. "Where's Blake though?"

" _Rubes, come and sit down!"_ Yang called out from a nearby table that was next to the counter. Ruby took one last glance at Weiss's picture before re-joining her sister. After she ordered a glass of chocolate mocha and a plate of fish and chips, she immediately turned her attention to Yang. She glanced at her portrait and then back at her.

"Redmond's Folly. I wanna hear more about it," Ruby said.

" _What's there to know?"_ Yang said in a sullen tone. _"It's nothing but a sorry episode in Vale's history."_

There was a look of concern on Ruby's face. "What happened?" she asked.

" _Evil happened, and I don't mean White Fang-type evil. Just imagine a group of cultists performing rituals, and the rituals are actually producing results like summoning some dark power."_

"Like that movie featuring Spruce Campbell where they read this cursed book?"

Yang paused, a dumbfounded expression appearing on her emoticon display. _"Uh, I guess that's one way to put it. But it's far worse than that."_

* * *

 _Flashback 90 years ago…_

A dirt road branched away from Vale's eastern ruins, an unassuming path that saw very little human traffic. Many creatures of Grimm infested this stretch of road that ranged from the lowly boarbatusk to groups of large-sized beringels. On the tree branches that hung over the road like spindly fingers, juvenile nevermores waited in silence. Their dark gazes came in the form of pairs of red eyes, but unlike regular nevermores, these bore the taint of the Warp. Little bits of purple dotted their eyes, and their bodies emitted purple-black auras.

In the absence of prey, they stood as still as they could. Some of them ruffled their feathers and squawked menacingly while others cocked their heads at each foreign sound they heard. A bush nearby rustled, stirring the flock from their state of rest. All heads turned towards the source, their bodies positioned to swoop at a moment's notice when a prey emerges.

Alas, out from the bush came a lone ursa major. It lumbered slowly across the road, stopping midway to look up at the juvenile flock. It gave a soft growl, taunting them for their overvigilance. They relaxed once more, and one of them gave a retaliatory screech at the offending ursa. It grunted and went on its way, but after taking only a single step, it stopped.

A loud wind shattered the silence at the exact moment, and a veil of thin dark clouds covered the moon. The nevermore flock looked up, their looks becoming more anticipatory. The ursa looked up too, and it stared at the direction where the road led back to Vale. Faintly, amidst the howling wind, there was the unmistakable sound of a loud engine.

Prey.

The flock readied itself once more, and the ursa crossed the road to hide itself behind a particularly thick dead tree. As the sound of the engine got louder and closer, the creatures of Grimm present in the area waited silently. Humans and faunus were hard to come by these days, and with food source getting scarcer ever since the Darkness came to pass, there was no sharing. Whoever gets the kill gets the meal.

A lone motorcycle with two persons on it came into view, its headlight piercing into the dark night like a cone of light. Immediately, the nevermore flock sprung into action and swooped at the bike. As sudden as their ambush was, they were met with an equally sudden hail of gunfire. The pillion rider mowed them down with rapid shots from her pistol, each shot a precision strike. Their bodies evaporated into black mists right after they hit the ground.

The ursa rushed out from its hiding spot, eager to claim the kill when the nevermores failed. It intended to stop the bike with its body, something which it was more than capable of. However, the rider swerved at the last second and cocked back her left hand. Within the split second of the ursa being in range, the rider threw out an Aura-assisted punch at the creature. Coupled with the high speed of the bike, the rider's fist went completely through the ursa major and even tore out a large chunk of its torso. It tumbled backwards like a weak ragdoll.

The motorcycle disappeared around a bend in the road, and the ursa's dead hulk started evaporating with the rest of the nevermores. The two riders continued unimpeded, but they remained on alert in case any Grimm decided to ambush them again. The road eventually led to a bumpy mountain path that promised a 500-metre drop should anyone lose their footing. The rider skilfully navigated the narrow and treacherous road, but she could not help but grip the handles until her knuckles became white. Sweat rolled down her neck, and her breathing was shallow.

The pillion rider was just as fear-stricken, and the more she looked down, the tighter her grip on the rider became. It eventually forced the rider to chide her.

"Blake, cut it out! I can't breathe!" she gasped through her helmet. "I thought cats aren't supposed to be afraid of heights."

"There's a limit to how much I can tolerate, Yang. This is more than what I'm willing to endure."

"I didn't see you having a problem when Ozpin launched us into the forest," Yang pointed out as they neared the peak.

"You wanna try a 'landing strategy' from this height?" Blake asked with narrowed eyes.

"I'll pass."

After an agonising 5 minutes of riding on the narrow path, they reached the peak of the mountain. It was a rather flat piece of land with a space big enough for a bullhead to land on. That was what was waiting for them there. The pilot, a middle-aged man with a grizzled look, was leaning against the fuselage while smoking a cigarette. Under the shadow of the air vehicle, the cigarette's light shone on his otherwise obscured face.

Yang rode up and parked her motorcycle next to the bullhead. She and Blake took off their helmets around the same time the man threw away his sole source of relaxation. He walked towards the two ladies and gave them each a nod of acknowledgement.

"I hope it wasn't too much of a hassle for you ladies?" he asked.

"Aside from an ursa and some nevermores trying to eat us, and riding on that Oum-awful path, yeah, no hassle at all," Yang replied dryly.

"Why exactly are we meeting here?" Blake asked right after Yang said her piece. "Wouldn't meeting at one of Vale's landing pads be enough?"

The man sighed and replied in a hoarse voice. "Flights in and out of the city are forbidden for the duration. Apparently, a couple of crazies hitched a ride in one of the airships to Vale and caused a mess at the airport."

"Another lockdown? Ugh, gods, they're getting annoying!" Yang exclaimed while throwing up her arms. "That's the fifth time this week."

Still…" Blake rubbed her chin. "There are many more places to rendezvous. Why here?"

The man did not answer. Instead, he leapt back into the bullhead. "We don't have all night. I was told to fly you to Redmond's Folly, and I'll do just that. You can interrogate the council later about the fine choice of meeting in the middle of absolutely fucking nowhere."

Yang and Blake looked at each other. While the blonde brawler looked dumbfounded, her faunus friend had a look of suspicion. Nevertheless, they decided to look into it later after they complete their patrol of Redmond's Folly. A side ramp was lowered so Yang could ride Bumblebee into the aircraft. Blake leapt into the passenger bay after the bike was secured. The bullhead's engines flared and it turned eastward towards a region that seemed shrouded in unnatural darkness.

Little did the two huntresses know that nearby, within a thick bush, the corpse of a half-eaten young man in pilot's uniform stared wide-eyed at the sky, fear etched into his last moments.

The flight to Redmond's Folly had been an uneventful as well as a silent one. Throughout the entire flight, Blake and Yang stared at each other like they were curiosities. Occasionally, the faunus huntress would examine Gambol Shroud while her friend checked on her bike. As the bullhead flew over the region of darkness, Blake scooted over to the window to see what was down there. Her eyes widened with horror and her cat ears folded. Seeing her expression, Yang went over and followed her gaze. While her reaction was not as pronounced as Blake's, she did react slightly by putting her hand over her mouth.

The unnatural darkness, while seemingly unmoving from afar, was very much alive and writhing with ethereal energies up close. One could describe the blanket of shadow as an organism, and dotting that blanket were terrifying maws with razor fangs and ectoplasmic tendrils and tentacles threshing about. They shifted about endlessly, changing from one form to the next with no rhyme or reason. It seemed rather silent despite all the chaotic forms down there, and while Yang heard nothing, Blake could. Her sensitive ears picked up distinct screams of torment and wails of agony coming from below, and there were demonic whispers in the mix. Some sounded terrifyingly close, as if they were in the cabin with them. She turned around quickly with her weapon drawn, half expecting a shadow monster creeping up on them. At this point, her pupils were already pinpoints and cold sweat ran down her forehead.

Yang saw what her friend was doing and immediately rushed over to lower her gun. "Whoa, take it easy. Blowing us out now would be a very bad idea. Whatever's bothering you, it's not real. There's nothing there, see?"

Yang pointed at the empty spot that Blake pointed her gun at earlier. Light reflected from the Warp shone through the windows, showing nothing but Bumblebee. Blake eased up slightly, but her breathing was still shallow. She swallowed a bit of saliva and sat down in her seat. "Am I...going crazy?"

Yang placed a hand on her shoulder. "No," she said softly while shaking her head. "You're not. We've...been through a lot. I guess it's a miracle we're all still alive and sane. For the most part at least."

Blake paused, then after a couple of seconds of silence, she began chuckling a bit. "I guess you have a point. I don't even think we should be sane, let alone stay alive. Everyday, Yang, everyday…...I hear them." At this point, tears were streaming from her eyes.

"Who?" Yang asked in a concerned tone.

Before Blake could answer, the pilot turned to look at them. "Arriving in 5 minutes, ladies. I'm dropping you two outside the town's walls. No place to land in the square."

"We'll talk about this later. Whoever or whatever's troubling you, Blake, I'll make sure they answer to Ember Celica," Yang said with determined grin and pounded her fists together.

Comforted by Yang's optimism, Blake managed a small but thankful smile. She wiped away her tears and took a deep breath. The blonde brawler could not help but notice that her friend looked rather like her mother. She managed to meet Kali about a few months before the assault on Salem's hideout, and it was interesting that Blake chose to cut her hair short. Probably it was due to the fact she wanted to honour the memories of her mother. Yang had asked her about it, but the faunus refused to give any specific reasons for her choice in hairstyle.

Redmond's Folly used to be an insignificant town during more peaceful times. It served as a retreat for tourists and was relatively safe from most Grimm attacks due to its location on a plateau. The only way people could go to and leave from Redmond's Folly was via air transport. There used to have a port for receiving passengers arriving via airbuses and airships, but it was destroyed by whatever dark creatures that lurked within the forests that surrounded the plateau. The supporting pillars gave out, and the entire thing was lost to the darkness below. After the cataclysm, it was isolated from Vale and other major settlements for the most part. Vale' council does support the population by airdropping supplies on a weekly basis, but even then, it was not enough to feed everyone.

The once verdant town became a ruined place, its quaint manors and resorts replaced by crude stone houses that resembled those of ancient days. With Dust supplies depleted and none arriving from Vale, the people there were forced to use torches and candles for lights and drew water manually from the central well. What remaining Dust ammunition they had were used very sparingly, and many were actually dismantled so that they could be used to power the only transmission tower in town. It was the only lifeline they had with Vale, and for a while, it served them rather well.

Vale was used to hearing report updates from Redmond's Folly, but a few days before Yang and Blake were sent to patrol the place, they lost contact with the town. Most of the council had opted to let the town be since they were nothing but a drain of resources, but the councilman decided not to abandon them to whatever fate awaited them out there. Hence, he secretly arranged for some veteran hunters to volunteer to make sure everything was alright. Yang and Blake were the only ones to sign up for this mission that laid outside the jurisdiction of the council.

The bullhead landed on a rough patch of ground, and Blake leapt out while Yang waited for the ramp to deploy and rode her motorcycle out. Once they were clear of the aircraft, it lifted off into the sky and proceeded to circle overhead. "You ladies go ahead," the pilot said via communicator. "I'll keep a lookout from the sky."

"Yeah, you do that," Yang muttered.

"I think it's best to leave your bike out here. No need to attract too much attention," Blake said.

"But...I can't just leave it out here," Yang objected.

Blake looked around and spotted what seemed like an abandoned shed located not too far from the town gates. She pointed a finger at it. "Looks like a good hiding spot."

"I'm not sure about you," Yang muttered. "But I think it's a little too late to be hiding stuff."

The two saw a group of armed people exit from the town and were headed for them. Leading the group was a haggard elderly man armed with a pistol in his right hand and a steel sword in his left. Though none of them seemed to show any signs of malice or hostility, Yang and Blake kept their guard up. They turned their weapon safeties off and waited.

"Are you two from Vale?" the elderly man asked in a gentle but authoritative tone.

"Who wants to know?" Yang asked in return.

"I do," the main said. "Now, answer me. Are you two from Vale?"

Yang looked at her partner. She nodded her head, and the blonde fighter turned her attention back to the man. "We are. The council was concerned with the lack of communication."

The man snorted. "The council, concerned? I'm sorry but that sounds like a whole lot of shit. Regardless, why're you here?"

"Oh, we're just here on a holiday, you know, come to watch the moon, see some dark creatures. Typical vacation stuff," Yang said with a shrug.

The crowd did not seem too fond with her answer and their grip on their weapons tightened. Yang responded with a challenging smile, but felt a hand on her shoulder.

Blake whispered to her. "It's better we don't try to start a fight." She then looked at the group and kept Gambol Shroud. "We don't mean any harm. We're just here to make sure everything's okay and be on our way."

"I see." The man ordered his group to lower their weapons, and they obeyed albeit reluctantly. Once their stance relaxed, he said, "I apologise for the armed welcome. You can never be too sure, especially when you have literal monsters to deal with. My name's Rafflesia Redmond, and I'm the mayor here."

"Gee, who could have guessed," Yang chuckled.

Blake frowned and elbowed Yang in the ribs, knocking a bit of air out of her. "If you don't mind, we'd like to take a look around," she said to Redmond.

"If you want to. Try not to get...caught up," the man said.

The group turned around and went back into the walled town, leaving Blake and Yang outside to wonder what he meant. Yang thought nothing of it after a while, but the black-haired faunus was slightly disturbed. She could not shake the feeling that Rafflesia was secretly threatening them or giving them a warning. At the same time, she started hearing whispers again, this time it came from the town. She rubbed her temples and attempted to will away the ghostly voices.

"Well, I guess there's that," Yang muttered. "What say we go check out the transmission tower first?" When she saw Blake holding her head, she hurried to her side. "Blake, what's wrong?"

"It's…nothing. We better get going," she answered weakly.

"Hey, we've talked about this. Whatever problem you're facing, you let us know. Let us help, let me help. It's what being a team is for."

Blake growled at her. "Sorry, but I don't think you can help me here. I just...just let me be."

Irritated, Yang grabbed her friend's shoulders and shook her once roughly. "Snap out of it! I swear to Oum you've been acting strange ever since we came back from Atlas."

For a moment, Blake's expression softened into one of resignation. She brushed away Yang's hand slowly and said, "Let's go."

* * *

"Cookies, Lady Rose?" Red asked while presenting to Ruby a large platter of chocolate chip cookies.

Yang paused mid sentence to look at the waiter while Ruby directed her attention to the platter of freshly baked hot cookies. The unmistakable ravenous look on her face made Yang smile inwardly. Even at this age, her love for cookies never changed. And so was her appetite for them.

Without giving a verbal answer, Ruby immediately grabbed them by the handful and began stuffing them into her mouth. "Ish shu gud!" she said with a mouth full of cookies. She swallowed a large bulk of it and continued eating more.

"Well, I'm certainly glad that you enjoyed them. I'll let the baker know that you um...cleaned everything up."

" _Like a mouse attracted to cheese,"_ Yang quipped.

"Hey, I'm not a mouse," Ruby said indignantly after swallowing another bulk.

Yang scratched her metal chin as if deep in thought. "Well, perhaps not, but you're definitely my cookie-depraved sis."

Ruby playfully slugged Yang's shoulder but ended up hurting her hand instead. After having a good laugh (much to Ruby's chagrin), Yang leaned back on her chair and stared at the ceiling. Ruby took a sip from her drink and looked at her elder half-sister.

"What happened after that? Did Blake ever tell you?" Ruby asked.

Yang remained still, and Ruby wondered if her mental link with the robot chassis was broken. Before she could go check on her, Yang shook her head, causing her to withdraw her hand.

" _She never did, and I didn't want to push it further cos we had a mission to complete. We did a quick sweep of the town and checked on the transmission tower. Nothing out of the ordinary, and just as we suspected, they merely ran out of Dust to power it. So we decided to call it a day. Well, actually, I called it. Blake thought something was still wrong though. A hunch she said, but I thought she was hearing voices again,"_ Yang answered. _"I dunno how she knew, but she thought the ruined resort located at the plateau's edge had some bad vibes coming from it."_

* * *

 _Cahaya's Spa Resort_ used to be quite popular for its exquisite spas and beautiful massage ladies, and it was one of the main income sources for the town. Yang had been to it once, and ever since that day, she wished to visit the place again. Funnily enough, she got her wish though it was under undesirable circumstances. The paint had already peeled away from the wall, exposing the red bricks underneath. The observation tower had already collapsed into a pile of rubble, and what was left of it connected to the main building was just a stump with wood sticking out from the wall.

The ornate wooden doors with handlebars of gold were long since lost to decay, leaving only a dark gaping maw. The townspeople had left them alone for the most part, but when one of them overheard Blake's intention to investigate the resort, she was quick to stop them. Naturally, Yang decided to go ahead and investigate anyway as she wanted to know what they were hiding in there. It was the largest building in town, and it had a mostly intact structure despite its condition. If the experience at Mountain Glenn was anything to go by, it was that even in ruins, people can still hide secrets in them.

Yang walked up the stone stairs that led to the entrance while Blake went around the back. The interior of the resort was extremely dilapidated, and dust caked every available surface. Yang let out a couple of sneezes as they got into her nose. Her sneezes echoed throughout the ruined halls and corridors. After her sneezing chain died down, she made her way deeper into the building. It did not help her nose was runny and eyes felt puffy.

The first floor consisted of the lobby, the dining hall, and a few toilets. There was nothing out of the ordinary there, though Yang was pleasantly surprised that there was still running water, although they ran in trickles. She washed her face in one of the dusty basins and went to the next floor. The elevator was inoperable, so she had to take the emergency stairs.

The second floor was a whole different story. Blood splattered all across the floors and walls, and there were trails that led into locked bedrooms. Most of the blood were dry, but a couple of trails seemed fresh. A rusty and wet smell permeated the air, and Yang gagged at the nauseating aroma. The ceiling lights were useless without a power source, and that was to be expected. But someone went through a lot of trouble to light the hallway with red-coloured candles. The flames flickered ominously, casting dancing shadows that seemed to mock at the blonde brawler.

Rounding a corner, she saw a pile of bloody bones blocking the way. A crude pike poked out from the middle, and a deformed head adorned it. The walls nearby had words written in blood. _"Skulls for the Skull Throne"_ and _"No salvation in hope"_ were some of the sentences that seemed to stand out from the rest. Aside from being disturbingly creepy, Yang started getting a headache from an invisible force that seemed to emanate from the bone pile. The headache felt like as if someone was beating the inside of her head with clubs.

Several violent images flashed in her mind, causing her to curl her robotic hand into a fist. She saw herself ripping the townspeople in half with her bare hands, shredding creatures of Grimm with Ember Celica, and crushing Salem's head. The last one was particularly tempting, and she was open to the idea. As if reading her mind, the bloody image showed her more ways to destroy Salem, some so outright brutal that it made her want to storm Salem's palace for a rematch and try that move on her sorry ass.

All this while, Yang was unaware that her eyes had turned into shades of red. A loud sound from behind snapped her out of her fantasy, and she blinked hard. However, the red colour never receded from her eyes. She went to investigate the source of the noise, and found that it came from one of the premium rooms. Without a second thought, Yang kicked the door and separated it from the hinges.

Whether or not it was adrenalin or supernatural bravery, Yang found herself staring at a group of blood-soaked townspeople beheading a young man armed with a spear. She felt calm and uncaring even when the man's head rolled on the floor and stopped at her feet.

"Kill her!" one of them shouted. "The summoning ritual must not be interrupted!"

They rushed at her with weapons raised while shouting like a horde of madmen. Yang's lips curled with fury and activated her gauntlets. The first one to reach her took a fist to the face, shattering his skull. The rest fell quite easily to her reflexes and power, none of them were even able to scratch her Aura. As Yang whittled them down, the summoner drew his blade and pointed it at his opponent.

"You, your skull will make a fine sacrifice," he said gruffly.

Yang spat on the floor and said, "If you want it so badly, come and get it."

Yang and the man ran at each other. She struck first, throwing a left hook at the man's face. He leaned back slightly, just enough for Yang to miss her mark. He returned the favour by doing a blade thrust. She slapped the blade aside just before it hit her abdomen. Throwing three punches in rapid succession, she managed to knock him off balance.

"Trying to summon spirits, pal? Where's your Ouija board?" Yang asked.

"Don't mistake parlour tricks for the real thing. You've seen what it can offer. Now, you either submit or face death," said the scar-faced man as he leapt back onto his feet.

Now that Yang got a good look at the man, she noted that he bore scars not just on his face, but also throughout his whole body. The blade he used was a straight sword with layers of dried blood caked on it. A brass scowling skull adorned the hilt.

Her observation of him was cut short when the man gave a cry and rushed her once more. Yang found herself deflecting and blocking his strikes of relentless fury, some of which struck her and took big chunks of Aura. The bloody blade seemed to roar with each swing, and the skull's eye sockets started to glow red.

"I will feast on your blood!" he shouted at the top of his voice.

Yang, who was forced back into the hallway, redirected the blade so that the tip hit the wall instead. To her horror, the blade went _through_ the wall instead of getting stuck. The man withdrew his weapon with impunity and swung at Yang's head. She was hit, and the last bit of her Aura depleted.

" _Shit, this guy's tough,"_ Yang thought to herself. Distant gunfire caught her attention, and her mind immediately thought of her friend. "Blake!"

The man leapt, his sword poised to cut her in half. But Yang juked and ran. The anger in her head finally cleared, she rushed to find her friend instead. She recognised the gunfire sounds of Gambol Shroud, but it was soon intermixed with other gunfire and loud explosions. At one point, she even heard the crackles of lightning.

The sounds eventually got more chaotic, because this time, it sounded like a fight had erupted in the town. Yang found the stairs that led to the basement, and promptly broke the lock that kept the door shut. The gunfire sounds were loudest down there, and she suspected Blake was there too.

Dead bodies were strewn across the floor, some scorched to a crisp, others had parts of their bodies blown off by fire Dust bullets. It turned out that the townspeople still had spare ammunition; just that they were stockpiling it for a fight. If there was fighting here…

It could very well attract the Grimm.

The situation got FUBAR fast. Yang heard the piercing cries of nevermores even when she was in the also had no idea what was going on as she ran towards the sounds of shooting in near darkness. Flashes of light coming from the boiler room caught her eye, and she went to check it out. When she arrived though, it was too late. The fighting had ended, and Blake was shackled to the ground by chains of ethereal energy. Mr. Redmond, now dressed in a purple robe and wielding a mysterious staff, was busy unleashing a torrent of magical fire at a battle-scarred woman. She did not even cry out in pain as the flames washed over her. When he stopped, all that was left was a soulless charred husk.

"Didn't I say not to get caught up?" he said and glared at Yang with purple glowing eyes.

"You! What's going on here?!" Yang asked angrily.

"Why, I'm merely introducing the true power to the ignorant masses. This town needed an...education, so to speak, but those blasted Khornates always mess things up. Still, victory in a minor setback," he said nonchalantly.

"Yang, help!"

Angered by the look of helplessness on Blake's face, and at the man, Yang gritted her teeth. Her eyes turned red with rage once more, and she pounded her fists together. "You're making a big mistake, pal. Let her go or I'll beat you to a bloody pulp. Hell, I think I'll beat you up regardless."

"Maybe another time," he said while smiling maliciously. "I have uses for your friend though."

"Hey!"

He lifted Blake up using telekinesis while she struggled fruitlessly to free herself from her bondage. Yang leapt into action, and with a mighty cry, swung a downward punch at Redmond. However, Ember Celica hit an invisible barrier, the air in front of the man shimmering. Yang lost her balance and fell onto the ground. Using the momentary distraction, Rafflesia Redmond waved his staff and disappeared in a blinding flash of white-purple light, taking Blake along with him. What was left of Blake was Gambol Shroud's hilt and a spare magazine.

Yang struggled back onto her feet, shaking uncontrollably with rage and sorrow. She raised her head and let out a mighty cry of rage and punched the boiler in front of her. The boiler crumbled under her blow, and loose parts fell onto the ground, clanking loudly as they hit the concrete floor and each other.

A loud explosion outside caught her attention, and hope surged in Yang. Perhaps the sorcerer had not gone far, she thought. She grabbed the hilt and spare magazine. Ignoring the dead bodies in her way, she found a stairway that led to the surface. Once outside, she saw that the whole town was in a mess. People were shooting at each other, and to add icing on the terrible cake, the creatures of Grimm were climbing over the town's walls. They were giving off a very intense purple aura, some even engulfed in an everlasting warpfire or crackled with electricity. The moment the cursed Grimm crossed the protective walls, they began attacking _everyone._

Fortunately for Yang, she spotted the damnable sorcerer engaged in combat with the fighter she fought earlier by the resort's gates. Blake had already passed out, her body floating limply in mid air. The two matched each other blow for blow, neither wanted to give ground. Seeing that Redmond was distracted, Yang decided to sneak Blake away.

However, before she could reach him, a rotting griffon swooped down and pushed her back instead. The commotion distracted the swordfighter, and almost immediately, Redmond focused and pointed his staff at him. Like a blighted candle, he burst into flames. It did not kill his opponent, but it did hurt him to the point of being unable to get up. Not once did the swordfighter howl in pain.

"If only you knew what fate has in store for you here, Yang Xiao Long, you wouldn't have come here," Redmond cackled. "This town was already damned from the start. Now, you get to enjoy the dark harvest."

Once more, he took Blake and teleported again. The griffon took a swipe at her, and she dodged the blow by rolling underneath it. There was no time to fight it, no matter how tempting it was to bash its head for getting in her way. Yang dashed for the exit and was immediately beset upon by several blood-soaked cultists. They fired their pistols while running towards her with swords and knives raised.

"Crush, kill, destroy!" they shouted.

The bullets deflected off her Aura. She rushed past them, stopping only to throw a Grimm or two at their direction. More cultists were gathered by the town's well, but unlike the other ones who tried to cut her down, these cultists did not seem to notice her. Instead, they formed a circle around the well, chanting incantations in an unknown but dark-sounding language.

Yang thought she heard a guttural laugh come from within the well. Much to her astonishment, the cultists began levitating, and their chanting got louder and frantic. A flash of red and a sharp headache played havoc with Yang's vision, and unbeknownst to her, her nose had started bleeding. Droplets of blood trickled down her lips and chin, eventually dripping onto the ground.

Suddenly, the cultists exploded in a shower of blood and gore. Yang heard gasps of horror nearby. There were still civilians in the area and there was no way for them to evacuate Redmond's Folly. She looked up at the sky and saw that the bullhead was carrying the sorcerer. He turned to give Yang a mocking smile before disappearing into the passenger cabin. Then, the aircraft flew further eastward and vanished into the darkened skies.

There was no time to grief though. As soon as the bullhead was gone, the well erupted with light, and out from the mouth came a large pink-coloured creature with beady black eyes, a large mouth and an odd number of limbs. The townspeople behind her ran away from the horrid creature while Yang stood her ground. It looked around, taking in the wondrous sights and sounds that defined the chaotic situation. Then, it started cackling merrily as if enjoying the mess.

"Beautiful isn't it? A world that thought it could remain safe from the Empyrean, only to find out that it only delayed the inevitable," it spoke in a rough voice.

" _Wait, that thing talks?"_ Yang wondered.

It dashed around like an overexcited child, killing a few Grimm that tried to attack it. It threw balls of warpfire at its attackers, burning them until there was nothing left. Then, the creature looked at Yang and grinned. Warp energy crackled in its fingers, and it tapped them together to make the energies arc. This was no Grimm, and it definitely was not any creature she had seen before. If this was truly a demon like the ones she saw in movies, there had to be a way to banish it back to wherever it came from.

It had a physical body, perhaps it was possible to beat it to submission.

Yang took the risk and rushed the demon. She punched it a couple of times, but even with Ember Celica blasting the demon at point blank, it did not seem to flinch at all. In fact, it felt like she was hitting someone with a full Aura. It pointed two hands at Yang and unleashed a torrent of fire at her. She managed to dodge most of the fire, but a bit of it nicked her Aura. Usually, Aura would mitigate damage and pain for most regular attacks, even high explosives and chemical fire. However, the moment the warpfire hit her, Yang cried out in pain. It felt like she was doused in lava, and her very soul felt the malefic flame. The pain was unlike anything she had felt before.

As more corrupted Grimm began filling the town, the fight between two cultists groups began dying down. With lesser distractions keeping them at bay, the creatures of Grimm finally turned their attention towards the civilians that were cowering by the entrance. Yang saw the nevermores and griffons swoop at them while a few armed townspeople shot at them with rifles and submachine guns. They were armed, but none of them seemed like they had much fighting experience.

The demon conjured up another ball of fire and threw it at Yang. This time, she slid underneath it and threw several Aura-enhanced blows at it. The demon reeled back from the assault, unable to defend itself from the franticness. The last punch liquified it into a blob of ectoplasm. Yang cringed at the sight but thought nothing about it. She thought she was done, but when she heard a whoop come from it, the blonde brawler quickly turned around. Immediately, she was jumped on by two blue-coloured creatures.

They seemed rather sullen compared to the pink demon she just smashed, but were no lss dangerous than before. One of them tried to wrap its hands around her neck while the other grabbed her hands in order to stop her from using them. Yang struggled to free herself from the vice-like grip, determined to protect the retreating townspeople. They had nowhere else to run, and if cornered, they may even get desperate and jump off the plateau. She did not like the idea at all. No matter how hard she struggled, the one gripping her neck refused to let up. It grumbled at her as if it was unhappy with her wriggling about. Yang gasped for air, and her vision started blurring from the lack of oxygen.

Then, it made a fatal mistake.

Yang's hair got into its face, and it swatted it aside, detaching several strands from her head. That did it. A new surge of rage passed through Yang. Her eyes glowed red, and her hair burst into flames like the raging sun. With her newfound strength, she freed her hands and counter-grappled the blue demon who had her neck. "Don't mess with my hair!" she snarled. Yang cocked back her right hand and threw a powerful punch that sent the demon sailing across the street. "I didn't forget you, you little shit!" She turned and grabbed the other demon and did a one-two punch to its face. She ten grabbed it by the neck and threw it over the wall, letting it plunge into the darkness below.

Her emotional outburst caught the attention of several nearby Grimm, and they went straight for her. Even with new powers gained from Warp corruption, they were unable to touch her while she was enraged. One by one, they were pummeled to death by the blonde brawler as they rushed at her and ignored the townspeople. However, there were still others attracted to the panic rife within the group huddle just outside the gates. More Grimm were climbing up the plateau as well, and another giant nevermore joined the fray.

Yang had managed to fight her way to the townspeople despite the large number of Grimm that stood in her way. She managed to pick up a carbine that was dropped by one of the cultists while on her way to Bumblebee. Leaping onto the motorcycle, she started the engines and revved it as loudly as she could. With their attention on her, Yang rode around in erratic patterns while firing the carbine at random targets. It did damage against anything smaller than an ursa, but the shots did not even faze the griffon and nevermores. When she ran out of bullets, she resorted to drive-by punches and ramming.

There was no way she could fight on forever, and the creatures of Grimm knew it too. Eventually, her motorcycle would run out of power and she would run out of energy to keep fighting. The townspeople would have no ammo. It would only end in death, and Yang realised she was only delaying their imminent deaths. Ruby was in stasis, Weiss refused to participate in anymore fights, and Blake was kidnapped by a crazed sorcerer. Perhaps there was nothing else left to fight for. She would have given up if it were not for the sounds of multiple bullheads headed their way.

They were modified bullheads that belonged to Vale's fledgling military. There were seven in total headed for Redmond's Folly, and they had gunners at the ready. The first to go down were the nevermores and griffons, their bodies getting pelted with a variety of Dust bullets. As they circled around the clearing, the bullhead gunners trained their sights on the land-based Grimm. Puffs of black smoke erupted everywhere as the bullets found their intended targets. A bullhead broke away from the group and landed next to the townspeople. The gunners urged them to board quickly, and they complied without being told twice. After it was full, the aircraft took off and another landed to rescue the next batch of people.

The last bullhead landed to pick up Yang, who was the last person on the ground. Qrow happened to be in it, and he beckoned his niece to board. The side ramp was lowered and Yang rode up into the bullhead. Once safely inside, it rejoined the rest of the squadron and flew back towards the direction of the city. Yang took a seat beside her uncle and leaned back. Finally, with some breathing space and time to think, her mind started replaying the events that transpired.

Eventually, she started breaking down, sobbing loudly enough that Qrow looked at her with a worried look on his face. "You alright, firecracker?" he asked.

"Blake...he took Blake," Yang muttered.

"Who did?"

"Rafflesia Redmond. He...he had magic. W-we were just checking out the town. He took her…"

Qrow was passive when he heard that name. He let out a sigh and patted her back slowly, hoping to comfort her. Her hands were shaking, and her muscles were tense. Thinking quickly, he grabbed a silver flask from his pocket, unscrewed the top, and handed it to Yang. She looked at it for a few seconds and wiped her eyes. Then, she took the flask from Qrow and drained it in one go. She handed it back to her uncle, who then looked at it with a disapproving look.

"Geez, kiddo, you must be really stressed out. I tell you what. When we get back home, I want you to tell me _everything_. If it makes you feel better, I promise we'll do our best to get your friend back. How 'bout it, eh?" Qrow asked kindly.

* * *

" _Uncle Qrow kept his word, but we never did find Blake. Until today...I still can't help but feel that...that she's out there somewhere,"_ Yang said in a whispery voice.

She looked at Ruby and noticed her eyes were watery as if she wanted to cry, or had already cried without her noticing. Instead of feeling saddened, Yang thought her sister looked rather comical with her big watery silver eyes. She managed to display a smiley emote on her display screen and patted Ruby on her back, much like how Qrow did when they were on the bullhead.

" _Now, now, all's good okay? I don't want any public - "_

Ruby finally bawled while hugging Yang's cold metal body. "Awww, I'msorryyouhadtogothroughallthat! Pleasepleasepleasedn'tbesad!"

If she had a face, it would be red with embarrassment right that instant. People were staring at them while Yang was trying to push her emotional sister away as gently as she could. Unfortunately, Ruby did not seem to get the hint, and she hugged Yang tighter instead. The waiter even let out a suppressed chuckle, and Yang shot him a glare that made him stop immediately.

" _That's enough, Rubes, you're embarrassing me,"_ Yang said.

Finally, she let go of her sister and wiped her eyes. "Sorry, I'm not sure what came over me," Ruby said with a giggle.

"An emotion called sadness, and a large capacity for understanding how others feel," someone said. It sounded rather bored and nonchalant.

The two looked towards the table next to theirs and saw a young lady dressed in an aquamarine-coloured robe. She wore a pair of spectacles, and her most striking feature was that she wore a similarly coloured habit that made her look like a nun. Ruby raised an eyebrow. She looked rather familiar, as if she had seen her somewhere before.

" _I'm sorry, you are?"_ Yang asked cautiously.

The young lady took a sip from her coffee cup and smiled at them. "Navi Tenger of Team PRSN, graduate from Schola Magicae. I was there during your rescue, Lady Rose."

* * *

 **A/N:** Yeesh, this was a long one, and I feel like I've blundered somewhere and they slipped past my vigilance. It's the first time I've written anything this long. Regardless, I wanna thank every one of you who have reviewed my story. I know it's not the best, but you guys put up with it and read it anyway. So thanks, I sincerely appreciate it. If there are future ideas you wanna see implemented, do tell me. I'm open to suggestions. Whether or not it would actually be implemented, well, that's a different story.

 **Guest:** People stay alive in different ways, they'd be explained. Some are just outright dead, like Pyrrha. Too soon?

 **TheDunkBro:** A few familiar faces will be alive, some are represented by their grandchildren. And as for cheesy lines, I'm sure every grimdark story needs things like "Blood for the Blood God!" or something like that :3

 **Dethcat:** Oh, Jaune has some importance alright, and it has something to do with Ruby and his large Aura reserve. Something, something, relic *redacted*. Speaking of Saints, there'll be appearances in future chapters. Keep an eye out. Also, Emperor be Praised!

 **Rogue Hunter:** A lot of pre-cataclysm hunters are held in high regard, and different kingdoms revere different hunters. Universally though, the hunters that took part in the failed assault against Salem are well-regarded. Some were...forgotten.


End file.
